Linda, my wife, has heard of a sailing course taught by women for women here in the Galveston Bay area but cannot seem to find any further information. Since I've recently been refered to as "Captain Bastard" it would seem I'm not the one to do the teaching. Any help would be great. As this is the first time she has shown any interest in learning to sail I would like to get her hooked asap. I can't go cruising if she can't sail too. Unless I leave her behind(ya right) she MUST learn to sail.

P.S. This is her idea not mine. If it was my idea it would have been vetoed already, right?........m

My boat partner's wife took a dinghy (Laser) course with all women. It was the right call for them. They sailed together after the course for a while and really enjoyed the lack of pressure and "help" they got from men.

We frequently have my partner's wife helm and we act as crew. She's great on the tiller and come to think of it she's a fair grinder on the sheets.

I used to teach sailing years ago. We never allowed husbands and wives or significant others on the same boat for good reason. Sailing lessons for women can be the same lessons that are taught to men. Women only sailing lessons in my opinion are unnecessary. Women don't need special lessons catered just to females because women are just as capable sailors as men and don't need any sort of special coddling. You just cant have significant others on the same boat.

A good sailing instructor will alter the lesson to match the learning curve of the individual students onboard. A good sailing instructor also has almost infinite patience, will never yell and will never show any frustration. A good sailing instructor will also be willing to do something over and over again until someone gets it right..and then allow the student do it again to enforce that this is how it is done. A good sailing school will provide the extra time to help people who are having difficulties.

Any good sailing school can teach her. You just cant be there during the lessons.

In fact, my better students were women because they paid attention and were not cocky like some of the men were. They were also more cautious and did not try to get ahead of their current skill level.

Since I've recently been refered to as "Captain Bastard" it would seem I'm not the one to do the teaching. Any help would be great.

I may have had the name before you. We need to check dates.

We had someone from the club take a WomanShip course in Annapolis. It can be a real confidence booster. She had a great time and if anyone has a great time in a class you get hooked for a good long while. I would agree with David M. It's the instructor and it really does not matter who owns the company it's the person on the water. Womanship is a larger class size and you can do better sometimes with ASA or US Sail. My wife and I did a one week ASA course as liveaboards and we had our own boat provided with 6 full hours sailing each day. The large class may seem fun but you get more hands on with a smaller class size. When in doubt call and speak with the instructor or go and meet them first. Most courses should have a lot of activity and in a sense be a lot of fun for evryone. You can still work hard and enjoy the class.

My wife and I did all the courses togther and it was not a problem. It helped more than hurts. It is far better than one not going. We still get at it some times but recently I've been boosted because there are a lot of husbands we know that are worse than me. I know at least three people I'm not as bad as. Sometimes it isn't much but you grab what you can.

I agree with David M. Years ago, I taught sailing on San Francisco Bay. Classes were made up of four students and an instructor, sailing boats from 19 to 27 feet.

Many of the classes were mixed -- male and female -- though we tried not to have spouses or significant others paired in the same classes. At that time, many of the students were physicians, nurses, pilots, and cabin attendants.

The females did just as well as the males. A good instructor can tailor his/her course to interest and skill levels, and in small classes can even provide "individualized" attention for each student.

San Francisco Bay sailing can be challenging. The winds and tides are such that in a few weeks you get in more sailing and learning than you would in a whole season or two in other areas, including my home waters (Chesapeake Bay).

While I applaud Womenship and other female-only instruction, and believe their courses might be right for some females, they are by definition aberrant situations -- they do not replicate the male/female mix found on most cruising boats. For that reason alone, I'd favor a coed class situation with an experienced instructor.

Steer clear of 'by women, for women' type of thing. It is not going to be a birth-giving course, is it. In a sailing course - look for good sailors-teachers with proven track and both sailing expertise and pedagogical skills. Sex does not count, sailing and pedagogical skills do.

So far she has not followed up on the classes. Since Ike(a year ago today) dumped my boat 50ft from shore in a poison oak patch we have had other things to deal with. It's hard to believe a storm can change so many things in your life.

The boat is repaired and waiting for me to get my business back on an even keel before I can afford slip fees and the like. Hunting season is here so my work load will hopefully increase to the point I won't have time to think about sailing for a couple of months. I have copied you site info and will pass it on to Linda..............m